Lyke LightsA MESSAGE FROM PITT'S DIRECTOR OF ATHLETICS

During a lifetime spent in athletics, I have learned the value of great teammates. This was true during my days as a student-athlete and remains true today as an athletics administrator.

And over the past two years I have been continuously impressed and inspired by the power of Panther Nation. You are our Most Valuable Teammate and make such a tremendous difference for our student-athletes, teams and overall department.

Great teammates answer the call when it’s 4th-and-short, the bottom of the ninth or when a game hangs in the balance. They are difference makers! Thank you for making an extraordinary difference for us every day.

In that spirit, I am calling upon Panther Nation to assist us on two key efforts as we anticipate the start of another exciting year of competition.

#1

First, it has been energizing to see the enthusiastic response to our new Pitt logos and colors. This summer I’ve seen so many people showing off their Pitt pride by wearing the new T-shirts, hats or polos.

It can go unnoticed but each time you purchase an item that carries a Pitt logo and the “Officially Licensed Merchandise” hologram sticker, you are providing critical support for our more than 475 student-athletes, 300 band members and 75 cheer and dance team members.

A portion of every officially licensed product sold comes back to Pitt Athletics and provides the financial resources needed to build a championship future for our Panthers.

You also can make the impact of that purchase go even further by buying directly from our official team store online at ShopPittPanthers.com or by stopping by one of the official team stores at Heinz Field. Simply purchase your item from us and an additional portion of each sale will come back to our program from our retail partner.

Thanks for considering this the next time you make a Panther purchase.

#2

Here is your second assignment, Panther Nation!

You have no doubt heard about the imminent launch of ACC Network (ACCN), a 24-hour, seven-days-a-week channel solely dedicated to the Atlantic Coast Conference.

After much anticipation, the ACC Network’s time is now—ACCN will make its historic debut this Thursday, August 22.

Agreements with four national providers are already in place, giving everyone the ability to access ACC Network: DIRECTV, YouTube TV, Hulu Live TV and PlayStation Vue.

Additionally, deals are in place with Charter/Spectrum, Google Fiber, Verizon Fios, TVision, Optimum, Suddenlink, as well as more than 60 other providers.

Here’s where we need to rally Pitt fans everywhere.

Go to GetACCN.com and see if your local cable provider is set to carry ACC Network. If your provider is not listed, contact them and demand that it carry ACCN as part of its channel lineup.

As of this writing, if you are a customer of Comcast Xfinity, DISH Network, CenturyLink, Frontier Communications or Armstrong Cable, you will NOT have access to the ACC Network in this market to watch upcoming games through your cable provider.

Your options are to either switch providers or persistently demand ACCN be added to your cable service.

For your reference, here are the phone numbers of those providers not yet on board:

Comcast Xfinity: (800) 934-6489

DISH Network: (800) 333-3474

CenturyLink: 866-642-0444

Frontier Communications: (855) 617-4470

Armstrong Cable: (877) 486-4666

Atlantic Broadband: (888) 536-9600

Blue Ridge/Pencor: (800) 222-5377

Consolidated Communications: (888) 723-1606

Zito Media: (800) 365-6988

Pitt Athletics and the ACC remain confident that the success of the ACC Network will continue to expand its coverage with additional providers. However, those carriers who have not yet signed up must realize the level of interest of Panther fans as well as our fellow ACC members.

Thank you for being a tremendous teammate of the Panthers. Your passion and support are integral to our student-athletes’ championship aspirations!

Hail to Pitt!

Heather Lyke

Director of Athletics

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